The Importance of Firearms Maintenance

How many of you enjoy cleaning the house? Bathroom sinks, showers, toilets…washing dishes? If you enjoy these things, congratulations, you are nearly one-of-a kind! Now, imagine that Hoppes no. 9 smell, CLP, Rem oil… ahhhhhh the alluring aroma of gun solvents and dirty, oil soaked, old T-shirts. Now thats some cleaning most of us don’t mind. Cleaning our firearms, can be a relaxing task that allows us to again restore our favorite toys to a pristine, shiny, lustrous condition. Outside of providing stress relief, there are some important reasons you should be cleaning your firearms. A former student who attended my Concealed Carry Weapons class recently contacted me. He had just bought a used pistol and found that it was not functioning correctly. He said sometimes the slide would not go forward into full battery. He was unsure what was causing it. We spoke a little, and after some time, he told me that he completely took the firearm apart, meticulously cleaned it, and then reassembled it. Low and behold, the firearm functioned just fine. The student told me that he noticed that the firearm needed cleaning, but was shocked to find that the malfunction was caused from the firearm being so dirty. This was an eye-opening experience for the student. He learned that firearm does not necessarily have to be covered in rust, mud or sand, to be dirty enough to cause a malfunction. We decided during that talk, that I should address this in an article…so here we are.

A field strip of a 1911 in preparation for cleaning

Now, yes it is true that I spent a fair amount of my life in the Marine Corps infantry, which means I also spent a great deal of time…great, great deal of time cleaning firearms. I am not suggesting that you clean your firearms to a condition that would cause Chesty Puller to crack an approving grin from beyond the grave. I am however, going to explain why cleaning and maintaining your firearms will save your life. How often should you clean your firearms? That depends on use. Cleaning your firearms after every time you shoot is probably impractical for most of us. I would recommend cleaning your firearm after a certain number of rounds. Some firearms are better at functioning dirty and some ammunition leaves more debris, making your gun dirtier than others. A safe, happy median would be to clean your firearm every 250 rounds. You can’t over clean your firearm, and if you desire to clean it every time you shoot it, you won’t be doing any harm. A dirty firearm can most certainly effect the way a firearm functions. A dirty magazine can cause failure to feed malfunctions. Failure to feed refers to the inability for a round to enter the chamber. A dirty extractor can cause problems with casing extraction. Improperly oiled internals can wreak havoc on trigger operation. If any of these things happen to you in a deadly force situation it could prove catastrophic. Additionally, rust can form on parts of your firearm from being in contact with perspiration. We all know rust and firearms don’t mix. When caring for your firearm, preventive maintenance is always easier than having to do a major cleaning.

Let’s start by stating the important, but obvious. When you clean your firearm, you should do it in a well lit and ventilated area, away from open flames. You should also remove any ammunition that may be present. Make sure the firearm is unloaded before disassembly. You’re going to want some old T-shirts, some q-tips, that old toothbrush that you needed to replace (you get a new one every dental visit anyway) and your cleaning kit consisting of patches, bore/chamber brush, punch rods cleaning solvent and lubricant. You may choose to use one of those nifty bore snakes, which I find work well. After all that, put on some of your favorite music and start your relaxation therapy.

If you are unsure, make sure to reference your owners manual when you disassemble your firearm. If you don’t have an owner’s manual, there are some great tutorials on YouTube these days. There are also some horrible tutorials on YouTube, so make sure to evaluate the source of your information. Another option is to visit the manufacturer’s web page itself. Often, you can download the owner’s manual directly from the website. Not only does the owners manual contain assembly and disassembly instructions, it often provides information on which points to apply oil. Please remember that when applying oil to your firearm, don’t over do it. If one drop of oil is sufficient, 50 drops is not 50 times better. Applying oil to areas not requiring oil, or applying too much oil is detrimental to the function of your firearm. Oil attracts debris such as, sand, dust, dirt lint, powder, etc. This can create a dirty, sludge-like build up that could cause a malfunction. Guns run well with light oil in key spots designated in your owner’s manual. Without this instruction, key points such as the rails in a semi automatic and a light coat on the outside of the barrel are all that is really needed. In absence of specific points named by the manufacturer (usually involving removal of the grips and lightly oiling the internals), most revolvers only need to be cleaned well and wiped down with a lightly oiled cloth.

There are many cleaning products on the market that promise outstanding results. Ask around and find what people seem to like, and it may work for you. There are some cleaning products that are not solvent based. These are a good option if you do not like the caustic properties or strong odor of solvents. These also have the benefit of not drying out your hands or potentially damaging plastic parts or accessories. Whatever product you choose, there are key points you want to clean. In a semi-automatic pistol these are the feed ramp, chamber, slide rails, trigger group area, and magazine well. For most areas, scrubbing is not necessary. Carbon and buildup tend to form on the feed ramp and chamber area, so if it’s been a while since these areas were cleaned, it may need a good scrubbing. If your toothbrush isn’t enough to remove some stubborn carbon build up in these areas, a brass wire brush can be used. Make sure to clean your magazine well. This area needs to be clear of any debris to allow the magazine to slide in and out properly. While you are at it, ensure you clean your magazines also. Especially if you have been running reloading drills and your mags have spent some time being dropped on the ground. Remove the base plate and clean the inside. Clean the follower and put it all back together. Do not put oil inside your magazines. This will surely attract debris and adversely effect the function of your magazines. For revolvers, the cleaning task is easy. The chamber, cylinder and barrel all need a good cleaning. When cleaning the barrel of any firearm, it is preferable to clean in the same direction the bullet travels. This is mainly because the area at the very end of the barrel, the crown or muzzle, could be damaged if you are using a metal cleaning rod inserted from the muzzle end. If you are using plastic cleaning rods or using a boresnake it really is not going to matter which direction you clean your barrel. In some cases like with some snub nosed revolvers, it is nearly impossibly to clean it without going from the muzzle side. Cleaning your barrel is simple and satisfying. First clean with your cleaning agent, and a barrel brush made for your caliber. After passing the brush several times, pass a cleaning rod with a patch attached through your barrel. A patch is simply a small, clean, cotton cloth. Pass the patches through your barrel until they come out clean. Look down your barrel in the light and observe the lands and groves happily shining away.

After cleaning your firearm, it is important to put it back the proper way and function check it. Cycle your slide (semiautomatic) and pull your trigger. Ensure the firearm is functioning i.e. hammer falling, striker releasing and resetting, etc. If you have dummy rounds/snap caps you can load them into your firearm and ensure the firearm is feeding, extracting and ejecting correctly. Lastly put a few drops of oil in a cloth and wipe the firearm down. Do not put too much oil on your firearm or it will be slippery and difficult to handle. You don’t want to have to handle an oily, slippery weapon, or have it in your expensive, new leather holster.

Have fun cleaning your firearm. Inspect it, look for areas that may appear to be wearing improperly. It’s better to catch a potential problem with your firearm while you are cleaning it, rather than when your life depends on it. Observe how the parts function. All of this time manipulating and cleaning your firearm, will give you the added confidence and understanding of how your firearm functions.

About Jacob Paulsen

Jacob S. Paulsen is the President of ConcealedCarry.com. ConcealedCarry.com provides in-person and online firearm training for American gun owners. The Company is currently teaching in-person classes in 25+ states with a team of more than 55 instructors. Jacob is a NRA certified instructor & Range Safety Officer, USCCA certified instructor and training counselor, Utah BCI instructor, Affiliate instructor for Next Level Training, and a Glock and Sig Sauer Certified Armorer. He resides in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado with his wife and children.